How do you clean your MLT after brewing?

[missing link]

Specifically how do you get the grain out and what do you put it in/where do you put it?

I just did my first 10 gal batch and getting all that grain in a garbage bag was a heck of a challenge.

Linc

 

[maltMonkey]

a thread on this from a couple weeks ago

 

[missing link]

a thread on this from a couple weeks ago

I was looking for the method used to get the grain out of the mash tun not where to put them afterwards.

I'm assuming you could dump them out, scoop them out with something or some other method I'm not aware of and put them into a garbage bag, or wheel borrow to get them to the final disposal site.

 

[SuperiorBrew]

I scoop mine out with somehhing on the order of a coolwhip bowl, i can bend it to get in near the fitting and thermometer stem, I scoop it into a 6 gallon bucket(s) and feed it to the deer & turkeys.

 

[Schlenkerla]

I use a cooler MLT. I scoop or dump most of it out into a trash can. Then hose it down with hot water from the kitchen tap. Using the hand sprayer... Dump & repeat. BTW - My tap water is really hot too, so it works well.

 

[ranch]

I just dump the grains out back/add it to the compost. It's all good from there.

As for the cleaning, I too just spray it down to get all the husks out of there and then give it a mild wash with a sponge (but nothing that could scrape the plastic). Rinse and air dry. The beer keeps tasting great so I guess my methods are sound.

 

[ohiobrewtus]

I dump my grains out back in the garden, give it a good spray with the hose and I'm done with it until I brew next, when it gets sanitized with everything else.

 

[Fingers]

I dump my grains out back in the garden, give it a good spray with the hose and I'm done with it until I brew next, when it gets sanitized with everything else.

+1 for dumping the grains out back, but I don't bother sanitizing it. Everything that comes out of it goes into an hour long boil. I don't even mix any Iodophor until I'm near the end of the boil.

 

[BrianP]

I dump my grains out back in the garden, give it a good spray with the hose and I'm done with it until I brew next, when it gets sanitized with everything else.

I do exactly what OB does.

 

[wilserbrewer]

Dump it out back...rinse w/ hose and store. ??????

Sanitize a mash tun???? PRE-BOIL I don't get too concerned!!

Mike

 

[bradsul]

I scoop mine out with a kitchen spider into a garbage bag lined bucket. Then I rinse out any leftover grains with hot water, dumping it out through a strainer (don't want it going down the sink drain) and wash with soapy water and dry. I live in an apartment so the garbage bag of spent grains just goes into the bin after that.

 

[Dr_Deathweed]

I just use a plastic cup or pitcher to scoop out the grains. Not much to it.

 

[shafferpilot]

I set my mlt on it's side on the edge of the sink and turn on the garbage disposal. Then i use the sprayer to loosen up the grains a little at a time and down the disposal they go. takes about 10 minutes. be careful to avoid overloading the disposal

 

[missing link]

I set my mlt on it's side on the edge of the sink and turn on the garbage disposal. Then i use the sprayer to loosen up the grains a little at a time and down the disposal they go. takes about 10 minutes. be careful to avoid overloading the disposal

I'll have to get a better scoop. The garbage disposal is probably the worst idea. The ground up grains will turn into a glue like paste and you will eventually get a clog. Another poster said it cost him $680 to get his drains cleared after using the disposal.

I was only asking because I was having so much trouble trying to scoop or dump the grains into a garbage bag. I will have to get a can to help hold the bag.

It's always nice to know what others do.

Linc

 

[Bernie Brewer]

I scoop mine out with somehhing on the order of a coolwhip bowl, i can bend it to get in near the fitting and thermometer stem, I scoop it into a 6 gallon bucket(s) and feed it to the deer & turkeys.

+1. I set it on my kids' old Radio Flyer, walk it down to the end of the road to where the state public hunting land is, and dump it for the critters. Then I hose it down. The hell with sanitizing, the MLT is pre-boil.

 

[brewt00l]

dump, hose, drip dry

 

[Boerderij_Kabouter]

I dump mine out back as well. In the summer I use a pressure washer to blast everything out. It doesn't really do anymore than the hose I use in the winter, but anything with an engine is just more fun to use.

 

[Schlenkerla]

I'll have to get a better scoop. The garbage disposal is probably the worst idea. The ground up grains will turn into a glue like paste and you will eventually get a clog. Another poster said it cost him $680 to get his drains cleared after using the disposal.

I was only asking because I was having so much trouble trying to scoop or dump the grains into a garbage bag. I will have to get a can to help hold the bag.

It's always nice to know what others do.

Linc

Ditto on this. Using the disposal is bad news, especially if you have a septic system. The biological-stuff can't break down the solids fast enough. The septic system will get clogged. This is very unsafe. People get stick from septic back-ups.

If you are on a sewer system its less severe but not a good idea. You wind up having to snake the drain sooner or later.

$.02

 

[Alemental]

Dump out back variation:
I dump it into a wheelbarrow, then wheel that outback and dump it under the apple trees for mulch.

 

[uglygoat]

the spent grain is for the deer, ducks/geese out back. sometimes the dogs have a go at it too, i try to keep them away, as it gives them the proverbial poopy butt, according to the kid.... :cross:

rinse the tun out in the slop sink and put it away. sometimes if i left the grain in there for a few days, i toss some oxiclean in there, and give it a quick scrub with a towel, then rinse it out.

 

[springer]

I set it on the kitchen table... Go do my other things I need to do(Have a Beer) - when I get back its all nice and clean by the little cleaning elf that is in my house....


I cant even leave a 1/4 bottle on the coffee table to go recycle the beer I just drank ... It will be scrubbed and drying on the bottle tree. My wife is a clean freak ..

 

[kappclark]

I have never sanitised my cooler/MLT - just a good rinsing/cleaning after session, and air dry..

 

[the_bird]

I have never sanitised my cooler/MLT - just a good rinsing/cleaning after session, and air dry..

+1. I'll clean it as good as I can with the hose while the wort is boiling, then clean it a bit more (if needed) before adding the grains next time, but don't stress about it too much. As noted, no need to sanitize.

 

[MTpilot]

Dump, rinse with hot water, scrub with soft sponge, drip dry.

Every third batch or so, I run hot PBW through HLT, sparge arm, MLT, boil kettle and any hose that needs it. I just do this because it seems good practice to clean a little more deeply than just rinsing.